How do I access the shared folders on my Network Attached Storage device. I would like to be able to access the shares as drives on my Linux OS. Do I mount the shares? I am able to map the shares as Network Drives in Vista, but I can't find the NAS anywhere on my network in Linux Mint.

Sounds like your NAS is using Samba since you can access it from Windows. The easiest way to access a Samba server is to type the following into the Nautilus address bar and then save it as a bookmark. Yo will have to Google for instructions on how to mount the shares during boot or from the cli.